On Thursday, the Learning Enhancement Department asked pupils “Can anything be true and false at the same time?” Read a sample of the answers received below:
“I think some things can be true and false at the same time because there are always two sides to a story.” Amelia
“I think it can if it is in the context of opinion as there is no right answer, so some may say it is true and some may say it is false. ” Aaron
“I think things can be true and false at the same time because if you look at some stories or myths some of the story might be made up while other parts must have been based on something true.” Eirene
“Yes, because if you walk up a mountain you will be cold, but you’re also getting closer to the sun!” Zain
“Perhaps in an opinion someone has given but realistically I would say no because it is one of those things that are complete opposites so saying both in a factual sentence would not make any sense.” Eleanor
“I think it depends on people’s opinions on what the topic is e.g. if it’s a theory or a comment, it could have information that some people might think is true/false. But, when it is something that can be proved with substantial evidence, such as a scientific report, I think that it could not be true or false at the same time.” Milly
“Perhaps it could, because, if you think about it, false teeth are false and true because it’s true that they exist, so false teeth are true and false.” Mia
“I think dreams can be true and false because sometimes dreams can be about what has happened and some dreams are made up in your head.” James
“A magic trick is true as you see it, just like any other illusion. But it is not actually magic and so it is false.” Hamish
“Yes, because if you had a question including ‘is it false’ and the answer is true, then you could.” Hannah
“I think something can be true and false, for example, the space is infinite is true and false because no one no knows the answer.” Otto
“Yes lots of things because you can cry from sadness but you can also cry from happiness.” Ursula
“Yes because in philosophical questions there is more than one answer.” Nadim
“No it cannot be true and false at the same time because we have to be truthful or nobody will believe us again.” Olivia
“Some things could be true and false at the same time because it depends how people feel about something. I say marshmallows are yummy but someone else might say that’s false because they don’t like them.” Kara
“No, because true and false are opposites.” Oliver
“If something is false, it is true that it is false. So it can be both at the same time.” Fraser
“No I don’t think facts can be true and false at the same time because they would contradict each other.” Magnus
“A fictional book with fictional people makes the people false (unreal) and because it is a book makes it real at the same time so my answer is yes.” Rufus
“Yes, they can because people can have different opinions about the same thing.” Finlay
“I think that nothing can be true and false at the same time because things have to be true or false and not both.” Alice
Click here to read last week’s Thinking Thursday Blog.
